Barn Tour: Stall makes his presence felt at Saratoga

Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Al Stall Jr. shipped only 10 horses from Kentucky to New York for the always-tough Saratoga meet, but he is making his presence felt.

Three of his first five starters won and another finished second during the opening half of the meet. He immediately asserted himself by saddling winners each of the first two days.

“Nothing is better than winning at Saratoga,” said Stall, 62. “When you’re standing in the winner’s circle, the phone in your pocket goes bing, bing, bing. You start looking at it and you’ve got 30 to 40 messages from your friends.

“Everybody’s watching up here, which makes it a lot of fun to win.”

Stall, one of the most affable figures on the backstretch, knows what it is to succeed at the highest level. He conditioned Blame when he edged the previously unbeaten mare Zenyatta in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

The Louisiana native has a strong family background in racing. His father is a member of the Fair Grounds Hall of Fame. He hopes his high-profile success in Saratoga will help him attract new owners. He oversees 35 horses in all and would welcome more.

“We’re kind of light these days,” he said. “Hopefully, we can build back up.”

Stall took Horse Racing Nation on a Barn Tour that focused primarily on horses who are with him in Saratoga:

Banned for Life. A 3-year-old Maximus Mischief colt owned by Spendthrift Farm, he is winless through five starts. He is hardly without hope, however, with a second and two third-place efforts. He is entered in Saturday's second race, a maiden special weight contest at Saratoga. Luis Saez will be aboard. “I’m surprised he’s still a maiden because he shows us a lot of ability.” Stall said. “We’re just waiting for him to put it together.”

Lord I Wonder. The 3-year-old daughter of Twirling Candy should be formidable in her next start after finishing second in her debut, going seven furlongs on July 12 at Saratoga. Top-shelf jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. has agreed to ride her back. “She ran a good race from the 1 hole. She’ll be one of the choices. Irad is the rider, so that’s a good thing.”

My Boy Rocket. First impressions are good for this unraced 2-year-old son of 2017 horse of the year Gun Runner. He is working steadily toward an expected September debut at Churchill Downs, Stall's home base. “He’s showing us a little bit of ability breezing down at Churchill. He’s one we’re keeping a close eye on, and we’ll give him every chance.”

Over and Ollie. This 4-year-old Cairo Prince gelding chose an opportune time to break his maiden, delivering on the second day of the Saratoga meet going 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf course with legendary Frankie Dettori aboard. He had been 0-for-5 before that for owner Dennis Narlinger. He is entered Friday in a starter-optional claiming race with Dettori riding him back, and he will step up to 1 3/8 miles. “He is on the upswing, doing well. I think the further the better for him.”

Pipes and Drums. A 6-year-old Maclean’s Music gelding, he is entered in Thursday's eighth race, a six-furlong contest. He brings in a record of 22: 6-3-4 and will have Luis Saez in the irons. In his last start, he finished third in a seven-furlong race June 29 at Churchill Downs. He ran for a $50,000 claiming price that day. Stall: “He’s in for $40,000. Maybe he fits in. If not, we’ll drop down a notch.”

Strong State. Stall knows the sire well, having enjoyed a great deal of success with multiple graded-stakes winner Tom’s d’Etat. It looks like Strong State inherited ample running ability from him. She needed to be steadied when she launched her career with a second-place effort going 5 1/2 furlongs at Churchill Downs. She made no mistake when she prevailed by a neck at the same distance at Saratoga on opening day. She has been so impressive that she is being pointed toward the seven-furlong Spinaway (G1) on Aug. 31. “We’re going to roll the dice and run her in the Spinaway. We’re hoping we fit in. I’m very happy with where she is at this moment.”

Unleash the Power. He helped jockey Joel Rosario celebrate his Hall of Fame enshrinement as his first winner after the Aug. 2 ceremony, traveling one mile on the inner turf course. The 5-year-old Curlin gelding was making his third start this season. He returned from a layoff of more than eight months by running third in a May 31 allowance race at Churchill Downs. Stall hopes to run him back the final week of the meet.